Bed of Shamrocks
by Silvire
Summary: Jack and Chase visit Ireland on Saint Patricks Day. How much Irish cultural reference can one fanfic have?


**Summary:**

Jack and Chase visit Ireland on Saint Patricks Day. How much Irish cultural reference can one fanfic have?

(I wrote this ON Saint Patricks Day but didnt get around to posting till now)

**Disclaimer:**

Xiaolin Showdown and all related characters belong to Christy Hui.

(Chase Young, Jack Spicer, Raimundo Pedrosa etc.)

The "Celtic Dragon" character that makes a brief cameo is MINE. He is my OC.

Pictures of him are currently being worked on, if any one ever wishes to see what he looks like.

**Warnings:**

Lots and lots of Irish/Celtic/Gaelic references. This includes modern Ireland, ancient history, famous landmarks, cultural symbols, the Irish language and, of course, Saint Patricks Day.

I myself am Irish, but i havent studied either History or Irish for a while. I wrote what i could from memory and used the Internet to double-check facts i wasnt sure of. Despite that, i could still make mistakes.

This story is unbeta'd.

The characters WILL be OOC!!! I wouldnt say i did it on purpose, but i didnt put any effort into making them IC either.

* * *

Chase was agitated. But seeing as Jack Spicer was involved, that was hardly surprising.

"Tell me again Spicer…why are we here?"

The dragon lord and evil Goth genius were currently standing at the foot of a huge, needle-shaped landmark called the Dublin Spire. Jack was amusing himself by trying to wrap his arms around the base and stare straight up at the sky in an attempt to gauge its height. Chase was leaning against it, arms folded and obviously bored. He was also uncomfortable; being forced out in modern public meant he'd had to abandon his armour, and he felt unusually vulnerable without it. He plucked at his black t-shirt and glared at the ground disdainfully; past his worn jeans to the pair of beat up trainers Jack had given him. Hand-me-downs from his cousin Jeffrey, Jack had informed him. It was a disgrace to his person!

Jack pouted at Chases question and let go of the shiny spire.

"I told you," he pouted, turning on his heel and waiting for Chase to begin walking. Despite their newfound…'closeness', when it came to Chase, Jack still had a vague sense of boundaries and what was expected of him. Increased familiarity did not mean a decrease in respect.

Chase fell into step beside Jack and proceeded warily. Really, this country was far too lopsided for its own good. So many people in one city, and yet the entire West coast was nearly deserted! Although that did mean that fascinating rocky landscape called '**_The Burren_**' (1) was almost untouched. There were some rare plants there that Chase hoped he might be able to utilise in his Soup.

"I've been wanting to visit here for a while now. And to make it even better, its Saint Patrick's Day!" Jack exclaimed, gesturing at the emerald paper shamrocks and smiling leprechaun plushies. Everywhere Chase looked there was a new shade of green (and copious amounts of alcohol being consumed). "What better place to celebrate it than Ireland?"

"I hear that the United States go to great lengths to celebrate the day."

"That's not the point."

Jack hovered outside the Eason's bookstore for a moment but moved on at a glare from Chase. He obviously didn't want to spend any more time there than necessary.

"Besides, I thought you'd like it here," Jack whined. "Irelands got a reputation for magic and stuff. Faeries, banshees, druids, kelpies, The Hill of Tara,_** Tír na nÓg**_-" (2)

"You certainly know your Irish folklore" Chase said, an eyebrow raised in amusement.

"Yeah, well…" Jack thumped his chest with a fist proudly. "Part Irish, you know."

"I wasn't aware" Chase replied mildly.

"Hey, there's lots you don't know about me!" Jack grinned, pausing as he hit the button for the road crossing to the bridge ahead of them. After a brief scuffle with the other pedestrians they continued on their way. Jack smiled in sympathy at the sight of an old woman crouching by the bridge wall and handed her a five-euro note as he passed.

"God bless you," she croaked after them.

"Compassion, Jack?" asked Chase. "Not very befitting for an Evil genius."

Jack pouted and said nothing. Chase let the matter drop.

As they reached the other side of the bridge, the two came to a crossroads.

"Straight ahead's Trinity College" Jack said, pointing the way. He was obviously enjoying the role of tour guide. "They've got the Book of Kells on display there."

"Really?" Chase visibly perked up. He'd heard very interesting rumours about that book from various informants across the world…perhaps a detour could be made before they left for home…

"Aaaaand on your right, is the way to Temple Bar and our destination; Forbidden Planet!" Jack crowed.

"Temple Bar is nothing more than cesspool of drunkards and body fluids." Chase scathed.

"Um…they're trying to fix that…" Jack mumbled, deflated. "Well they are!" he insisted, seeing Chases withering look. "They've got a campaign going on to get the good image back. Soon the place will be a playground for us Goths and Emos again." (3)

"Sounds like you have some fond memories of that place." Chase noted. Jack deadpanned and pointed to himself.

"Part Irish. All Goth. Hel-lo?" he drawled in a monotone that quickly broke with an excited shriek as Forbidden Planet came into view.

"I still don't see why this particular bookshop is so special." Chase said. "I hold literature in the highest regard, but-"

"This bookshop is made for me Chase!" Jack chattered giddily. "It's the subcultures bookstore! Like Hot Topic clothes!"

"Hot what?" Chase managed to say before being forcibly dragged inside.

***FAST-FORWARD 30 MINS (GIVE OR TAKE)***

"Ahhh, that was good." Jack murmured happily, weighed down with plastic bags filled with comics, DVDs and the occasional plushie. Jack turned to smile at Chase but froze at the thunderous look on the dragons face.

"Wha-?"

"That store assistant." Chase growled out.

"Huh?" Jack cast his mind back to the cashier that had rung up his purchases. He'd had brown spiked hair and a couple of piercings, but nothing like some of the other hardcore punks. He'd chatted with Jack in a Brazilian accent about Evangelion when he'd spotted the DVD case. A nice enough guy. A little full of himself maybe, but nice.

"Oh yeah, him. What about him?"

Chase scowled fiercely. " Are you really so naïve?! Even now, after iv taken you countless times?!"

Jack blushed the same colour as his hair as some passers-by glanced at them curiously.

"I know we're outside Chase, but you might wanna consider using your indoor voice for this…"

"He wanted you, Spicer!"

"He wan…he WHAT?!"

"When you first approached the counter, and while you were discussing that insipid piece of trash-"

"Hey! I know you're mad but leave the mecha out of this!"

"-his pheromone levels increased tenfold! The scent of desire was almost tangible!"

Jack studied the incensed warlord for a moment, then shifted all his bags into one hand and grabbed Chases arm. "Follow me."

Jack pulled Chase into a nearby alley and promptly dropped all the bags at his feet, flinging his arms around Chases neck and kissing him deeply. Chase made a muffled noise of surprise but quickly got into his stride and began dominating the kiss with powerful slick strokes of his tongue. Jack gave a breathy moan and turned his head aside regretfully, burying his face in Chases neck.

" You're getting all riled up over nothing," he whispered against Chases flesh. "That guy means less than nothing to me and after today I'll never see him again. You honestly think that guy is a threat?"

Chase took a deep breath, and for a moment Jack thought he was going to go psycho again. Or worse, go full dragon. Instead, however, Chases shoulders suddenly slumped and he leaned his head on Jacks shoulder.

"My apologies" he muttered. And that was all Jack needed.

"Its ok" Jack smiled. "Now help me get my stuff and lets get out of here."

Returning to the street, they walked in comfortable silence for a moment. Then Jack looked up at Chase with a grin.

"Wanna see what else I got?" Without waiting for a reply Jack dove into a bag and brought out a handful of green material. Shaking it out he held it up for Chase to see. Emblazoned in gold on the green t-shirt were the words "Kiss Me, I'm Irish." (4)

"And you know" Jack continued with a cheeky wink. "There's a pretty popular gay bar called 'The George' around here…"

Jack sighed in exasperation as horrified fury appeared on the mans face.

"I wasn't gonna wear the t-shirt there!"

***HOURS-LATER***

"This is…wow" Jack sighed, cuddling up against Chase.

Chase hummed in agreement. The pair were lying on top of the grassy mound that covered the passage tomb grave, '**_Newgrange'_**. (5) It was very late (Four am? Five? Jack had lost track. Chase would probably know from the moon and star position or something).

The Saint Patrick's Day party at the bar had been a huge success. Even Chase had enjoyed himself, shamelessly flaunting Jack in front of the other club-goers, winning the admiration of the crowd by drinking every challenger under the table, and surprising Jack completely when he'd nudged Spicer in the side and pointed to a lithe young man with red and green streaked black hair in the middle of the dance floor.

"Celtic dragon". He muttered (6).

"Where?!" Jack gasped, craning his head for a better look. Since moving in with Chase he'd met many other dragons; a lot more than he thought existed. Other Chinese 'long' like Chase (except they were naturally born, not Soup-made), Japanese 'ryu', Indian 'naga', and the closest he'd come to Irish was probably English 'Wyvern'. It had shaken him at first to think that Chase wasn't completely unique in the humanoid lizard aspect, but after a while he found he felt happy about it. It was kind of nice, that Chase had others like him. (He did have a laughing fit at the thought of a Dragons Anonymous club though).

Once the pair had had their fill of dancing and alcohol and heat, Chase had brought him outside to a deserted corner and transported them, not home like Jack expected, but to the rural, peaceful site of Newgrange.

Jacks head was pillowed on the warlords firm chest, ear to his heart and eyes to the sky. Chase had one arm around Jacks shoulders, the other behind his own head. Jack couldn't see his face but he knew Chase was staring at the stars like he was.

Unfortunately, being the bratty teen he was, Jack couldn't help getting a slight dig at Chase.

"Looks like you've changed your mind about the Emerlad Isle, hm?" he said with a smirk. He felt the dragons' chest expand as Chase released a sigh.

"I was always fond of Ireland," he muttered quietly. "Like yourself, I have some history here, though considerably further back than your life span. Back when each _**túath **_was led by its_** Ard Ri, **_whenevery Irish clan lived in their own _**ráth **_or_** crannog **_(7),and magic, druids and demons were the norm. Ancient Ireland. It's this…_urbanisation_ I cannot stand."

Jack craned his head around, trying to see the mans face without shifting from his warm spot against his side.

"But you told me you like Hong Kong and New York," he said, confused.

"I do," Chase agreed. "Those lands were naturally inclined towards becoming cities. Ireland has a wild heart. But it's becoming smothered by tarmac and concrete. Time has diluted its free spirit. The Celts were inspirational with their freedom; they firmly believed in magic, encouraged their women to fight alongside men in war, it was widely accepted that males commonly took male lovers."

Here, Chase ran a hand through Jacks blood red hair.

"I'm not saying those traits have vanished completely," he mused "But I miss the fierce simplicity this land used to thrive on."

"You can't stop progress, Chase," Jack murmured, becoming drowsy from the sensation of Chase stroking his hair. "Even if you destroyed everything, threw the world back into the Dark Ages, evolution and development would just start all over again."

Chase made a noise that sounded like he would rather test that theory than accept it, but it was more from curiosity than a real wish to annihilate modern society.

"Besides," Jack continued, with a yawn, "If it really means that much to you, I could always start working on my time machine again. Or we could get the monks to…to wager the Sands of…Time…"

Chase raised his head at the sudden silence and let it fall back with a chuckle, tightening his one-armed hold on Spicers sleeping form. Turning onto his side, he wrapped his other arm around Jacks waist and pressed his cheek to the albinos soft crimson locks.

"**_Mo shonuachar_**" (8) he whispered, so low he wasn't sure if any sound had actually escaped his lips. He wouldn't transport them back to the Lair just yet. There was something cool and soothing about lying on a bed of shamrocks.

* * *

Most of the Irish references i made can be found on Wikipedia.

1.) _**The Burren**_- A region in the northwest. The largest unique karst landscape in Europe. There is also a village nearby called Doolin, which is the setting for a PS3 game called 'Folklore'.

2.) _**Tír na nÓg**_ (_Tear Na No-guh_)- Land of Eternal Youth. (Sounds like Chases kind of place, doesnt it?)

3.) Temple Bars a regular hang-out spot for teenagers, especially of the subculture variety. At least it was the last time i was there.

4.) In the story, Jacks only part Irish. But i'v never seen any "Kiss Me, Im Part Irish" t-shirts before. Jack could always get a marker and write it in himself i suppose...

5.) **_Newgrange_**- .org/wiki/Newgrange

6.) An OC of mine that occasionally roleplays in the Xiaolin Showdown Universe, and making a brief cameo in this story

7.) _**túath **_(_two-ah_)_**-**_ often translated as "people", "tribe" or "nation". Referred to both the people who lived in a shared territory, and the territory they controlled

_**Ard Ri **(Ard (as is 'hard' without the H) Ree.**- **_High King_**  
**_

_**ráth- **_Ringfort, a fortified settlement_**  
**_

_**crannog **_(_cran-oh-guh_)_**- **_an artificial (man-made) island settlement, usually built in lakes, rivers or estuaries

8.)**_Mo shonuachar _**_(Muh hon-ew-ah-car)- _My soulmate

"Anamchara" could also be used for 'soul mate' but some people believe that 'Anamchara' (literally 'soulfriend') doesnt mean soulmate as in true love, but actually traditionally means 'spiritual mentor'. There is no direct translation of the word Soulmate into Irish, except for the closest equivalent "Sonuachar", from the blessing "Sonuachar chugat : May you find a soulmate". ((Also, in the story, "Sonuachar" is given a H because Jack is male.))


End file.
